International Volunteer Day: Advancing disability inclusion

Wed, 12/04/2019 - 14:00

Tomorrow’s International Volunteer Day (IVD) is an opportunity for us all to promote volunteerism, encourage governments to support volunteer efforts and recognize volunteer contributions to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at local, national and international levels.

This year’s theme "Volunteer for an inclusive future" highlights SDG 10 and the pursuit of equality – including inclusion – through volunteerism.

The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme has been working to increase the integration and inclusion of persons with disabilities in all aspects of political, social, economic and cultural life. The organization continues scaling up its engagement with partners, UN agencies and donors to advance disability inclusion across UNV’s volunteer mobilization and recruitment efforts and within the United Nations system.

The UNDP-UNV Talent Programme for Young Professionals with Disabilities was launched in January 2018. With a commitment to leave no one behind, it promotes the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the workforce of the United Nations.

In 2019, 31 UN Volunteers with disabilities, including 15 deployed under the Talent Programme, served across the UN family. Many more UN Volunteers supported the provision of services to persons with disabilities.

The UNDP-UNV Talent Programme is supported by the Government of Germany, represented by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). Moreover, the Governments of Sweden, France and Finland support specific UN Volunteer assignments under the programme.

Volunteering provides opportunities for people, particularly those often excluded, to concretely impact their own lives and play a constructive role in their communities by volunteering their time and skills. Through volunteerism, communities around the world often experience strengthened solidarity and inclusion.